Triggers!

lissa0040

For a bonus 20 points or just for the fun of it -- name a situation in which you want to eat everything in sight or at least run to your favorite comfort food? Stress -- isn't an answer try being more specific. Recognizing our triggers is a huge part of being successful in weight loss.

lissa0040

Oy! I have several triggers. Mine have to do with emotional issues. I'd say when I am stressing out because I haven't sold a house in a while and my husband asks me if I have any idea when my next paycheck will come I want to feed the stress. I order a french fry from McDonald's because the salty goodness makes me feel a little better (then a whole lot guilty) in the moment. Another trigger is when I feel down. about life in general (thought I'd have a couple kids by now instead I have none... etc.) and feeling sorry for myself which is a USELESS emotion -- I eat. (don't feel sorry for me I haven't even tried to have a baby I want to get some weight off first but as a result I have been in a holding pattern.) When I think about all the stuff my weight has held me back from it makes me want to scream and fix it. One of my other triggers is feeling like I just want to have a good time. When I go out with friends and everyone is ordering a burger and a beer I feel like the fatso always having to get chicken with broccoli and a water. That makes me wanna throw caution to the wind and eat what tastes good so I don't stick out like a sore thumb. I have come a long way this past year. I definitely could do better but I AM reaching some of my financial and professional goals but the weight loss is a battle in my head and with my lifestyle. I don't feel some of the above issues as often anymore -- like I don't really care what it looks like when I order a salad anymore. Also I have been doing things that I have put on hold forever because it is dumb to let my weight sit me on the sidelines of life. So I am learning and recognizing what messes me up -- it's not pretty I know. I have been super honest and I hope I didn't bum anyone out but when I look at the triggers I listed above I realize how silly most of it is and how it isn't helping. Sometimes saying it out loud (or writing as the case may be) helps take the power out of the situation.

roundtherink

I understand how you feel. I also thought I'd have kids (and be married) by now, and it hasn't happened for me.
For me, loneliness triggers a binge. Its like I use food to keep me company. I also grew up with a mother that harped on me for what I ate- and I wasn't an overweight child or teenager. She was heavy, and worried that I would be too, so if she saw me eating potato chips (or something 'bad') she'd say things like, "Oink oink- you better watch it or that dress/jeans/whatever won't fit you anymore." After she died when I was in my 20's, I quickly gained over 100 pounds, thinking that 'she can't tell me I'm fat or what to eat anymore'. Then a pattern of binge-eating started that I have struggled for YEARS to break free from. I also learned that I can't blame her, and I have to let all that go, or I'll never recover.
Its still a struggle for me not to binge, but I finally feel like I'm on the right track. Logging and being accountable for what I eat has helped so much. Also, forcing myself to exercise in some way each day is helping a lot. I feel so much better since I'm more active. Fitting into smaller clothes is also so encouraging, that its helping keep me from overeating all the time.
I've finally accepted that this is a lifestyle, so if I want to go out to eat with my friends, or have a treat at Disney- I CAN. I just need to exercise to balance out the calories, not do it every day, and ENJOY when I do go out. I figure as long as I eat right 90% of the time, I can indulge the other 10%. Its working for me.

alanabanana01

oh---your words hit home for sure! I like food, I really really do. And I like food that is full of delicious fatty starchy goodness! I dont have much of a sweet tooth, but comfort foods---that is were I want to wallow my time away.
I will eat for any emotional reason......but the biggest ones are when I feel hurt. If I feel that my family doesn't care--or my coworkers are thoughtless, or whatever is making me unhappy.

If I am MAD I tend to not eat.....I should get mad more often!

I also tie food into celebrations---so happy times....I feel like I should be able to eat like the 'normals' on special occasions.

its a mind set thing, but sometimes my mind gets the best of me for sure!

lissa0040

I she'd say things like, "Oink oink- you better watch it or that dress/jeans/whatever won't fit you anymore." After she died when I was in my 20's, I quickly gained over 100 pounds, thinking that 'she can't tell me I'm fat or what to eat anymore'. Then a pattern of binge-eating started that I have struggled for YEARS to break free from. I also learned that I can't blame her, and I have to let all that go, or I'll never recover.

I identify with this so much. My dad was awful in this way too. He wasn't overweight but he said so many awful things to me "You'll never find a man if you're heavy!" and putting me on a diet while the whole family ate normal food. I remember eating cabbage soup for every meal for a week when I was like 13. When I look back at the pictures I definitely wasn't skinny but I wasn't fat either. I would sneak food all the time -- so I think in my head I thought I was teaching him a lesson... anyways it has taken me YEARS to stop blaming him for every pound I gain. I'm an adult and taking care of myself is my responsibility not anyone else.